At least 82 died, and nine are missing after a gas explosion at the Liushenyu coal mine in Changzhi, China—one of the country's deadliest mining accidents in a decade.
Hundreds of workers were trapped underground, according to the South China Morning Post. A major rescue operation was ordered by President Xi Jinping.
The blast took place on Friday in Qinyuan County, around 520 km southwest of Beijing, shortly after the mine reportedly issued a carbon monoxide alert. As many as 247 workers were underground at the time of the explosion.
"Make every effort" to locate the missing workers and ensure the aftermath is "properly handled", directed Jinping.
"All regions and departments must learn from the lessons of the accident, remain vigilant regarding workplace safety, thoroughly investigate and rectify all types of risks and hidden dangers, and resolutely prevent and curb the occurrence of major and serious accidents," said Xi.
He also added that strict action would be taken against anyone found accountable for the incident.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang instructed the State Council's workplace safety office to remind local administrations of their duty to investigate industrial accidents and "resolutely" prevent future disasters.
The exact cause of the explosion is still under investigation. The state media and emergency authorities indicate that catastrophic buildup of toxic and volatile gas led to the blast. Carbon monoxide is a high toxic and flammable; when mixed with coal dust or pockets of naturally occurring methane gas in deep shafts, it creates a volatile environment highly susceptible to igniting.
Meanwhile, Xinhua reported that executives of the company responsible for the Liushenyu mine had been detained.
Shanxi is China's main coal-producing province and is larger than Greece.
